Dana White not fond of forcing COVID-19 vaccination, ‘Your decision, your body’

Dana White won’t enforce any COVID-19 vaccine mandates in the UFC anytime soon.

As the global pandemic gets closer to departing our lives, the UFC has done its best to return to normality — as evidenced by the return of fan-filled arena events. But with the coronavirus not yet 100 percent out of our lives, certain locations and businesses have begun requiring vaccination.

“I would never tell another human being what to do with their body,” Dana White told TSN. “If you want to get vaccinated, that’s up to you. That’s your choice. You’re never going to hear me say I’m going to force people to get vaccinated. Never gonna happen.

“I think a lot of people are doing that, they’re telling you in New York [City] you can’t go into a restaurant or a gym unless you’re vaccinated and can prove it and things like that,” White said. “Some people are getting fired if they don’t get vaccinated.

“That’s not going to happen here [in the UFC],” he continued. “If you want to get vaccinated … get vaccinated. If you don’t, that’s your decision, your body.”

The UFC and Dana White recently announced some matchups such as the welterweight title rematch between Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington for UFC 268 on November 6. Originally presumed to be the promotion’s return to New York City, that possibility is now uncertain as the city recently made it so several indoor activities and events will require attendees to be vaccinated.

“If we can pull it off [in New York],” Dana White said. “We were supposed to go to England and that didn’t work out. We’re moving that to Vegas and the plan is New York but if New York doesn’t work out, I’ll move it somewhere that it will.”

In light of the news, Michael Chandler recently shared that he won’t be vaccinated by that time. He’s set to take on Justin Gaethje in his next time out.